March 18, 2026<\/a><\/p>\nThis win marks Venezuela’s first major international baseball tournament victory since claiming gold at the 1959 Pan-Am Games.<\/p>\n
Six Venezuelan pitchers limited the vaunted American offense to just three hits and six baserunners while striking out 10. Team USA didn’t get a runner past second base until Harper’s tying homer off Andr\u00e9s Machado in the eighth.<\/p>\n
Maikel Garcia opened the scoring for Venezuela with an RBI sacrifice fly in the top of the third. Wilyer Abreu continued his monster tournament by crushing a solo homer off USA starter Nolan McLean, who struck out four and allowed the two runs in 4 2\/3 innings.<\/p>\n
“We were not supposed to be here, people don’t believe in us,” Garcia said. “But we believe in each other and we did a job.”<\/p>\n
He added: “We showed the people who Venezuela is. Next time they make a ranking, Venezuela is the No. 1.”<\/p>\n
Venezuelan starter Eduardo Rodriguez was brilliant, surrendering one hit while tallying four strikeouts over 4 1\/3 innings before yielding to the bullpen.<\/p>\n
“This is the greatest moment I’ve ever got on the mound pitching,” Rodriguez said. “Pitching like that in front of almost our home crowd, the whole of Venezuela was here. … I can’t even tell you how I feel right now.”<\/p>\n
For Team USA, the result is another crushing loss in the WBC final. The Americans dropped the 2023 championship to Japan in the same ballpark by the same 3-2 score. Team USA has won the tournament only once, in 2017.<\/p>\n
“I’d love to get over the finish line,” Mark DeRosa said when asked if he’d like to return as U.S. manager. “Not only is it two times but 3-2 both times.<\/p>\n
“If you saw how hurting the guys are in that locker room, you’d know why. For some reason, this WBC has become a tidal wave of emotion for a lot of guys. You get them in the room representing their country, coming together for two-and-a-half weeks, the buy-in. It’s infectious in there.”<\/p>\n